


1776 Ticks

by proofagainsttheirenmity



Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Soulmate-Identifying Timers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-01
Updated: 2016-08-01
Packaged: 2018-07-28 15:02:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,670
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7645837
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/proofagainsttheirenmity/pseuds/proofagainsttheirenmity
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Everyone has a timer on their right shoulder. It tells you your life, your future, and everything that goes with it. When it reaches zero, you've found your soulmate.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1776 Ticks

1776 TICKS:

It was an extraordinarily low number. For most people, it' somewhere between 15 and 20 thousand. But not for Alexander Hamilton. 

When someone's timer was too low, people knew. They'd look at that person on their way to school, on the subway, at work. It wasn't any different for Alex. Ever since he was born, his parents had been all too wary of his timer. They'd frantically check it every day, to make sure it wasn't too low. They moved him to New York, hoping that his timer would go up. They thought they were running away from his Caribbean soulmate. But the timer only ticked down faster and faster.

When he was sixteen, he met a girl named Angelica Schuyler. She was smart, funny, everything Alex hoped his soulmate would be. But after taking a look at his timer, she led him to her sister - Eliza. Their timers were both at 967. Finding a perfect match was rare. They weren't yet soulmates, but could be someday. Alex kept a close eye on Eliza. He and the Schuylers would do everything together - Angelica, Eliza, and their younger sister Peggy. That is, until Angelica's timer hit zero, and she brought home Thomas Jefferson.

He drew Angelica away from her family. He told her, "They aren't worth your time. We are soulmates. They can never have that connection with you." Thomas brought her to France, where they lived for many years. Then, they went to London. Angelica and Thomas had four children, and lived out their days. It was a perfect ending to a not-so-perfect relationship.

Eliza's timer began counting down her final ticks, but Alex's had slowed its pace. They were no longer so close together. When Eliza hit ten, she began searching. The one person she found was Maria Renolds at 7. They were perfect matches at such a low number...surely it was meant to be! They did what no person should do, and moved in together before guaranteeing their connection. They made childish, rushed decisions, and lived to regret it.

As they laid in bed one night, Eliza hunched over on her shoulder. Maria gently placed a hand on her back, and Eliza leaned into the touch. "Eliza, what is it?"

"Nothing."

Maria stared at her soulmate. "It's something. Why won't you tell me?"

Eliza sighed. "I don't want to hurt you."

"You won't hurt me."

"Yes, I will."

"I've been through worse, Eliza. What's going on?"

Eliza flipped over. "It's at zero." Maria stared at her.

"What?"

"My timer!" Eliza cried. "I saw yours last night, it was at two. Mine's at zero."

"How long have you known?" Maria whispered. Eliza began to say something, an apology, but Maria cut her off. "How. Long. Have. You. Known?"

Eliza grimaced into the pillow. "A month or so..."

"Eliza! You should have told me!" Again, Eliza began to say something. Maria held up a hand. "Look, if it's not meant to be, it's not meant to be. If we kept...THIS going, that would be selfish."

"I know," Eliza replied softly. "James and your soulmate would be left alon -"

"James?" Maria cried out, as Eliza curled back into the pillow.

She looked at Maria in apology. "Oh. Um...when I went walking the other day, I, um, went to find my soulmate. His...his name is James. James Madison." Maria shook her head, slowly, in disbelief.

"What, did you forget to mention all of this?"

"I'm sorry, Maria! I just..."

Maria dismissed Eliza with a wave of her hand. "Look, I'm going to go pack. I hope you and James have the best of luck together. I'll go find my soulmate, I'm very close. I'll tell you about him. Just - promise that you'll always remember this. That you'll remember us."

"Oh my God, Maria, how could I ever forget -?"

"Good." Maria stood, and walked out of their bedroom without another word. 

Four days after, Eliza and James held a small wedding for the two. Only Peggy and Alex attended. They were, respectively, the maid of honor and the best man. Two weeks later, Eliza received an invitation to the wedding of Maria Reynolds and Aaron Burr. She politely declined.

Peggy never spoke often about her timer, but one day, she didn't show up to her daily coffee outing with Alex. He discovered later the reason why. When he returned to his apartment, there was a letter waiting for him.  
\-------------------------------------  
Dear Alex,  
It's such short notice, but I wished to inform you. I have found my soulmate. His name is Hercules Mulligan, and we wed quietly last night. Nobody was here, don't feel left out, I implore you. We are to head to Virginia tomorrow, where he owns a tailoring business. I wish I could see you one more time, for one final goodbye, but time was not on our side, I'm afraid. I hope this letter satisfies you.  
Yours, most sincerely,  
Margaret Schuyler  
\-------------------------------------  
Eliza only ever saw Maria once more in her lifetime. Eliza and James were sitting comfortably together on their living room couch, when a frantic knock on their door startled them. Eliza rose, and opened the door. "Oh, thank God!" Maria cried, sobbing. "Eliza, I...I don't know what to do."

"Maria, what's going on? Please, come in," Eliza said, opening the door wider. James stood up, after an imploring look from Eliza, and helped move Maria to the sofa. Once they'd all sat down, Eliza placed her hands on Maria's knees. "Okay, darling, what happened?"

She sniffled. "I found out yesterday. Aaron...he had an affair. With another woman."

Eliza sat up stiffly. "I'm sorry, Aaron did what?"

Maria nodded. "How I wish it wasn't true. It's a girl named Theodosia Bartow. She's beautiful, rich, everything that I'm not. And...and...that's not the worst part about this whole thing, Eliza," she said, breaking down.

"Shh...," Eliza said, taking Maria's hands. "What is it?"

Maria looked up at Eliza, her eyes filled with tears. "She's pregnant."

Eliza dropped her hands and went to the phone. "Excuse me a minute, please." She dialed, and the person she was looking for picked up almost immediately.

*** LANGUAGE IN THS PART YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED ***

"Hello?"

"WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO?"

Aaron Burr sighed. "Hello, Eliza. I assume Maria is there?"

"You're damn right she is. Theodosia Bartow, huh?"

"Look Eliza, it was a mistake, I tried to apologize, but Maria wouldn't have it!"

Eliza's eyes widened. "Well, of course she wouldn't! Her husband, her goddamn soulmate, got another woman pregnant! Let me tell you, if I was Maria, I'd have called the police by now, so consider yourself lucky."

Burr yawned. "Eliza, it's 1:45 in the morning, can we discuss this lat -"

"Is she going to keep it?"

He paused a moment. "Excuse me?"

"Theodosia. The child. Is she going to keep it?"

"Wh - what - of course she's going to keep the child! Eliza, are you out of your mind?"

"Burr, fuck off. I hope you never see Maria again. She doesn't deserve the likes of you, nor do you in ANY WAY deserve her. Go back to your whore girlfriend, I hope your child rots in hell with the rest of you." With that, Eliza hung up, and was met with the gaping faces of both James and Maria.

Maria's smile made all of that worth it though. "Thank you."

Alex's timer hadn't moved at all for two years. His friends had all been off and married for two years, and yet here he was. Stuck at 1. He'd been the first to reach it, and the last to surpass it. Until August 1st, 2016.

John Laurens had just reached 1. It was time to go find his soulmate. His original number had been 1776 - extraordinarily low. This number meant he had to find number 76 on 17th street. That was all the information John had about this location. The day was August 1st, 2016, and it was time to go exploring.

Alex typed the address into his GPS, and let it take him from here. When he arrived at the location, he realized it was the entrance to an aeronautics museum. That was interesting - flight had always been a subject of interest for him. Alex decided he would give his soulmate half an hour. After that - well, he'd live forever alone.

John knew the address right away. It was the aeronautics museum, the place he and his best friend would always go to as kids. Before his friend met his perfect match, and abandoned all else in his life. The museum was within walking distance - it only took about ten minutes to get there. So he set off, eager to find who was waiting for him at the museum.

It had been fifteen minutes until Alex saw the figure walking down the sidewalk. The street was desolate and bare. Not many people came this way in the city. This person was either lost or, by some miracle, his soulmate.

The truck was slightly familiar. It looked like the truck that the father of John's friend used to drive. He always promised that the truck would be passed on to his son someday, when was older. Could it - no. No way. That was impossible.

Alex knew the face immediately. But he didn't understand. He had to be lost. There was no way. It couldn't be.

Somebody in the truck screamed, "John!" And at that moment, John knew. This WAS possible. This was happening. His best friend - his soulmate? 

The figure broke into a run. It was John - it had to be. Alex opened the door and met the sprint with a massive embrace.

They closed in. John smiled. "It's good to see you, Alex."

Alex grinned. "Soulmates, huh?" John laughed, and Alex continued. "Well, what do soulmates do?" Alex brought his hand up to John's face, cupped his cheek softly, and closed the distance.

The wedding invitations were sent out the next day.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first Soulmate AU, so bear with me please. :) ~Sarah


End file.
